Yamaha YZR-M1 '05 Anniversary Edition

[KevHw]

Hey all, thought I had done enough so far to provide a good start to make this wip. Always find posting these helps keep me going .

I've been totally taken by these bike kits and in the midst of finishing my YZR-M1 '04, (before I ran out of paint ) I realised how much enjoyment I had from the kit. So I bought this other Tamiya kit with a few other goodies:



CM CF Decal Silver Grey Diagonal
MFH Bike Chain Set


Tamiya Weathering Set


Tamiya Front Fork Set '05



Was very daunting looking at the task at hand at constructing the PE chain, but when I managed to figure out how to assemble it efficiently, it was pretty easy. I saw the Acu-Station from previous posts and that's definately a lot more labourous so I recommend the MFH kit if people want to try it out.

As other people do, I realised it's safer to make the chain in stages,


And then joining them up at the end,






The instructions require the use of a pen-tipped soldering iron, but since I didn't have one, I had to heat a flat-head electronics screwdriver with a candle flame and press the heated end down to flatten the plastic links...very amateur but it worked so... . Still wondering how to approach painting it though.

Then started work on the exhausts because I was excited try out the weathering set. I'm pretty happy with the results of it, but I guess I'll have to wait to see what it's like on the finished model.







Then started work on applying CF to parts and applying Tamiya Smoke on top. The CF I used for the '04 model is thinner so teared more easily after Microsol but this silver diagonal decal seems a bit thicker and so stretched a tad bit more.

The front fork set by Tamiya is beautiful. A real pleasure to work with. Would love to have my own model lathe to make stuff like this...one day maybe...


Damn folds when applying the CF meant this visible difference in twill pattern but it won't be noticeable on the complete model (hopefully).




Have filled in the rear swing arm and installed the damper and am currently working on covering CF to the other parts and then I'll start the bodywork. One major issue is that I seem to have lost the small gear from the chain set that attaches to the engine. If I still can't find it after a while I'll have to just use the plastic kit piece . Using Ole_L's thread on his fantastically detailed kit, for reference on some parts.

I would love to hear your c&c's. Apart from a few mishaps so far, turning out to be one of my best builds . Thanks all for looking.

[jezz]

nice start i have the chain set coming from hobbylink japan also the front fork set for my yammaha 2004 with a top studio detail set that will be my main project this summer i will be watching this build for any tips

[Adam Baker]

Holy crap, that chain is just nuts, but it looks absolutely amazing! Cant wait to see this one done.

[vrossi85]

Very nice start and i love the chain! I would like to get one too.

Ro

[Roca46]

Nice work with the chain, I just bought that product too and I will test it on the KR, it seems that finally we have an easy chain to build, the one from Acu Stion was very very difficult.
Roca.

[joelwideqvist]

Great start, chain looks dandy and the cf looks fine too. I think the staining needs a bit more job. Try working in some red and to rub the blue in a bit more. Looks crayon like right now.
Joel

[FernandoGaldiano]

Amazing jobs ! Congratulations !

Regards.

[geronimo77]

Nice build, but i think the exhaust heat effect is a bit overdone.
Honestly i'm a bit dissapointed seeing the MFH chain. As a see the rivets are not really nice. Or maybe just because of the photo but for me they not seems to be round.

[Ole_L]

Nice start on the bike. The chain looks interesting... and I may just get one for my next project.

[KevHw]

Thanks all for the comments and advice. I'm working on the cowlings during this weekend so hopefully will have some more progress pictures up in a few days.


Roca46:
I can't wait to see your build then. You're right that this is such an easier chain kit than Acu-Station's but I think if I really was serious enough to include a real chain, I'd probably buy the Acu-Station's one as it's a lot more realistic in both function and finish. One hell of a task still though!

geronimo77:
I'm also a bit concious of overdoing the exhaust. At the moment I've pretty much finished it and glued onto the engine but if the final product looks bad I'll think about re-painting it and trying again. As for the rivets, they are not nice, I agree. Like I mentioned in my post, they're basically just melted plastic ends so there's no precision to them at all. Sanding them down will clean them up a bit, but 1: it might break the link and 2: it will still have an irregular look to it (non-circular).


Due to all this, and coupled with the fact that I still can't find the small drive gear, I think I'll have to resort to the kit's plastic chain piece...a real shame. But I'm planning on keeping the chain to use on the other kits it's compatible with and I still have the gear parts for (RC211V or the Ducati).

Progress pics coming soon. Thanks.

[ifanov]

Hi,

Great job there lookin good.

How was the MFH chain to build? I have this chain with the MFH GSXR 1000 kit that i'm working on and it looks pretty daunting....

The outside links for my model must be painted red, i was thinking of painting the red links before assembling the chain, as i thought it would be easier than trying to paint around melted plastic? what do you think??

All the best,

Ifan

[KevHw]

Hello all. Had been raining pretty much all of the week apart from today, so couldn't get much painting done. Coupled with the fact that I have once again found experienced how much of a pain, painting white is . It's as if it's a totally different consistency to other colours and is so much more translucent that it takes several coats more than usual and can't really be applied in wet coats as it runs so easily. Overall, a horrible experience.

Managed to get the front fender finished...



Started working decals onto the rear seat cowling but then this happened...





The decals supplied with this kit are so much more delicate than I've ever handled before, the microsol worked in seconds and completely started to ruin the decal. That and the fact it's a thin piece meant I had to rip off the bad bit and I'll have to paint the remaining line on later. Once that's done, I'll do the other side. That was a big de-motivator as I'm not looking forward to the masking job ahead.

Been carbon decaling parts...





Heat from my desk lamp whilst trying to dry these off slightly melted and distorted this (heat shield?) part so it's slightly curved out now =/







The colour in the photos for some reason appears a tad bit oversaturated so it's not quite that blue on the exhaust. Brakes callipers are done, only need to finish off the disks. A light coat of smoke has been applied to the intercooler as I haven't quite figured out how to do black wash perfectly yet. Chassis is pretty much done. Only the fairings that's left.

ifanov:

Yes this chain is daunting at first sight, but after building it, it's really a great kit to have in my opinion, one I'd definately buy again. But only for a super-detailed build. Nothing wrong with the kit piece. Building it is not hard at all. You just need a steady hand to place each link on, and just be prepared for working like a machine... Find a method that works most efficiently for you and it's the simple matter of duplicating the process again and again. If the links have to be red, then yes it is best to paint the links first. Thinking about it, try not to apply too heavy a coat of paint, so there's still room for the melted plastic to hold it together.

Thanks for looking, guys.

[Twowheelsrule]

First, I want to say wonderful job! Your bike looks real good even though you said you had some problems.

For the problems you mentioned, I want to share some hard learned lessons with anyone reading this thread. In the case of the white paint the answer I found was start with white primer, then use Tamiya flat white paint for first layers of color, and last top with gloss white, or what ever gloss color you are finishing with.

For the Yamaha tail decal, I ripped my first set so, on the second try I cut mine in a spot that I was able to work out the small end seperately and still hide the cut when the decal was completed. It worked out great!

Keep up the good work KevHw you are doing a great job so far!
Mark

[KevHw]

Twowheelsrule:
Thanks for your kind words. And I'll definitely use your advice on the white paint method...just need to go buy myself some white primer now.


This is just another mini-update. Just been touching up some paint work and finishing off the chassis including the kit wiring etc. Wanted to show off some of the pics before the final photos I'll upload once the fairings are complete which, knowing me, will probably be done by next week. Anyways, pics...

(On a side note, sorry about the decrease in quality of the photos. I realised that MS Paint really pixellates the images when I re-size them. Will have decent ones when I finish it.)





Drilled out the holes on the brake disk...




Next to my almost finished '04 model. Just waiting till UK has Tamiya sprays again ...









Does anyone have a reference picture I could use that shows off the front right fork? I'd like to know if I could add on that red damper thingy that's attached to the front right brake calliper. Just want to know dimensions and how it's attached etc...


Photo taken from one of this forum's members' full CF YZR-M1. Sorry I can't remember who. Hope you don't mind me using your photo.

Thanks for looking

[ketje]

Looking good. Do you have a close-up of the finished chain?